Chapter Five
Jason
The situation had completely gone out of my hands. I sat helplessly on the couch as I watched the girl grab a blanket and wrap it around Mackenzie. She then led her into her bedroom so she could lie down, the whole time murmuring soothing words to her friend. While all this went on around me, I felt like I had entered the Twilight Zone. I looked down at my hands and tried to calm my mind, but I was just too confused.
The girl returned to the living room and faced me with a ferocity and anger I was growing accustomed to.
“I think it’s time you left. You’ve certainly created a mess here.”
I sighed. “What’s your name? You’re obviously close to Mackenzie.”
She narrowed her eyes at me, and I just waited. “My name is Lexy. Mackenzie and I work together, but she’s my best friend.”
I nodded, unsure of where to go from there.
“You’re a mark, aren’t you?”
I laughed. “Yeah, I guess you could say that. But at this point, things have gotten much more complicated.”
“I hope you aren’t here to collect something back from her. Whatever she took from you is long gone, and we have no intention of returning it. So you might as well just go.”
“Believe me, Lexy, I could care less about the paintings at this point. The stolen merchandise isn’t why I’m here. And truly, she’s welcome to keep it all. I just need her help. That’s the only reason I’m here. I’m in trouble, and I have no one else to turn to.”
Her eyebrows creased, and she seemed to soften a bit. She took a seat across from me and crossed her arms over her chest, still slightly guarded.
“I see something in you. Some sort of connection to Mackenzie. You couldn’t cut it even if you tried,” she observed. “Okay, I’ll stop trying to kick you out of our place, but I need to know what it is you want from Mackenzie. As you can clearly see, she may not be able to help you at the moment.”
I exhaled sharply, feeling grateful that she would at least hear me out. “Thank you. I’ve had a hell of a week, and I’m telling you I’m starting to think I’m cursed.” Her eyebrow raised, and I told her everything—from the first phone call to Brett showing up.
“I still don’t know what happened to him because he won’t—can’t—talk to me. He either assumes that Janelle is dead when she isn’t, or she really is dead, and the kidnappers are lying to me.”
Lexy rubbed her face. “Holy shit.”
“Yeah. It’s all so messed up. I also received a weird email yesterday from an old friend saying he needed some help and to meet him at some hotel. I didn’t go, of course, because I was dealing with my sister’s kidnapping, but now I’m wondering if it’s all connected.”
Lexy’s eyes widened, and she glanced toward Mackenzie’s bedroom. It looked like she was deep in thought about something. She looked back at me and sighed.
“What did the kidnappers say?”
“They won’t return Janelle safely unless I give them another $50 million. I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place. I can’t give them the money because I don’t think they’ll stop asking now, and there are no guarantees that Janelle is coming home safely. It’s a huge mess, and I have no idea what to do. I have to rescue my sister, but I need some help. I can’t just pay them again and hope for the best. At this point, they may just kill her anyway and take off with the money.”
“Quite the mess you’re in, uh…?”
“My name is Jason.”
“So what do you want from Mackenzie?”
“Like I said, I’m not here for the paintings. She can keep them. I’ll never ask for them or tell a soul she stole them, and I won’t go to the authorities. I’ll just forget it ever happened. If she can help me, I’ll forget it all. What I need is for Mackenzie to steal my sister back for me.”
“Okay, I need to ask you a few questions first.”
“I’ll tell you anything you need to know.”
“This friend that emailed you, what’s your involvement with him?”
“We made a lot of money together a long time ago. We don’t see each other much anymore, but we use each other for big favors. He did me one a while back, and I’m assuming he was planning on asking me for a favor back. I would have been there if I could have, but I had to meet with the kidnappers. Now I look like a welsher.”
A smile formed on her face.
“What?”
“It appears we’re both acquainted with the same person. I believe the man you’re referring to is a Mr. James Anthony Trenton. We were the favor he was asking of you. He had us in his custody, but Mackenzie talked him into letting us go.”
I laughed in surprise. “Why am I not surprised? She can be very convincing. But I wonder what he wanted with me?”
“The fact that you know him makes me feel better about you, Jason. And I think that I’d like to bring James into this. I think he would be very helpful.”
“Fair enough, whatever you think is best. So does that mean you’ll help me?”
“Yes, but for now I think it will have to be just James and me.”
“Understood. Let me call James.”
I dialed his number with Lexy watching me the entire time—these girls were completely badass. James answered the phone right away, and I immediately apologized for missing his meeting and then explained why I did so. After hearing my story, he told me I should have called him immediately and that he’d help me in whatever way possible.
Knowing that he was going to be there for me as well as Lexy gave me the first glimmer of hope I’d felt since the kidnapper first called. There was a surprised pause when I told him where I was, but he said he’d be right over.
I ended the call and looked at Lexy. “He’s in.”
She smiled. “Perfect. I’ll start the preparations so that we’re good to go when James arrives.”
“I can’t tell you how grateful I am.”
“I’m not doing it just for you, Jason. I’m doing it for Mackenzie, too.”
“So can I leave this in your capable hands? I’d like to go see Mackenzie. I think I may be able to help her.”
She looked at me as if she could see into my soul then nodded. “Maybe you can. Go ahead. But if you hurt her, I will kill you.”
I didn’t doubt her sincerity. “Fair enough.”
I had complete trust in Lexy and James to save my sister. Now I went to Mackenzie’s bedroom with the goal of saving Mackenzie from herself.